Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) - SW [S - P3] - 12 Inch Figures

While Han Solo's strike team remains on the moon of Endor, Luke leaves to face his father Darth Vader one last time. Luke turns himself in to the Imperial forces and Vader brings his son before the Emperor on the Death Star. There, the Emperor tries to turn Luke to the dark side and almost succeeds: in a fit of rage. Luke viciously wounds Vader. His thoughts and feelings recollected, Luke refuses the Emperor's promised power. The enraged Emperor uses the dark side to cast deadly lightning at the young Jedi. The Emperor almost kills Luke, but Darth Vader rises to save his son and hurls the Emperor down the Death Star's reactor shaft.

Not another 12” scaled Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) figure! Yeah, that’s a similar sentiment felt when Hasbro announced that another Luke Skywalker in this outfit would be coming in the final phase of the Star Wars “Saga” line. But with very few exceptions, Hasbro is typically never content with rehashing characters in the exact same fashion as a previously released version, so they approach the new 2003 Star Wars “Saga” Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) in a simpler albeit stranger way. Everyone is well aware how many action features inundated the earliest phases of the Star Wars “Saga” line before it became a more collector-focused line. But the latest Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) 12 Inch Figure comes with one and we don’t understand why. The packaging goes on to explain that he has a “control handle” on his back and this allows you to move his upper body in a fashion akin to “slashing lightsaber attack action.” (Um, aren’t Jedi supposed to use the Force for defense and never for attack?) Anyway, it’s a completely stupid addition to this figure and upsets the aesthetics to an otherwise decent figure.

Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) comes without a lot of the bells and whistles that earlier versions did too. It seems that Hasbro’s focus for this release was to recreate the “Endor capture” sequence of the film as evidenced by the inclusion of binders and his lightsaber. But the detail that really makes this evident is the addition of his right hand wearing a black glove from his injury on Jabba’s sail barge by a skiff guard. What confuses this detail however is that Hasbro added his brown vest and cummerbund here to which isn’t inaccurate but sets more of a stage for his appearance at Jabba’s palace more than in the rest of the film. Clearly, Luke Skywalker is wearing his black glove while wearing his tunic and cummerbund belt in Bright Tree Village. We’re just trying to make the point that these additional pieces to his Jedi Knight outfit are just more associated with the earlier scenes in the film. Either way, Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) is still a screen-accurate figure. and except for a few issues, we think Hasbro did a pretty good job on him.

One of the most obvious updates to this version of Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) is that Hasbro utilized a newer buck which gives Luke a thinner appearance. He isn’t as thick as he needs to be, but it’s a tremendous update to the earliest 12 Inch Figures made by Hasbro. We’re happy with the results. Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) has a head sculpt that will divide collectors. When we look at the portrait, we see so many accurate details that mimic actor Mark Hamill perfectly, but then other features throw you off and make you think the complete opposite. From side view there is no doubt this looks just like Mark Hamill. But a head-on glance may make you do a double-take. As you stare at his portrait, you’ll be saying “that looks like him, that looks nothing like him.” It’s odd, and it’s bizarre, but that’s the best way we can explain it. Luke’s lightsaber looks very good, as well. It breaks down into hilt and blade, and as you can imagine it offers some display options for you. With a great center of gravity and a decent likeness, Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) might not be a definitive update, but is progressively better.